GRIMOIRE

A 'grimoire' (IPA ) is a journal kept by practitioners containing information and contributions relevant to this specific field of study. Sacred texts or private journals, manuscripts, or records restricted only for the use of members of religious, scientific, or other exclusive groups have existed since methods of copying and recollection of information have existed.[1]
Grimoires are customarily associated with science, religion, and magic, although the dinstinctions may be only a matter of perspective. In "Some Reflections on the Relationship Magic-Religion", author H. S. Versnel writes: "Anthropologists in particular have argued that no meaningful contrast between religion and magic can be gained from this approach and that our notion 'magic' is a modern-western biased construct which does not fit representations of other cultures."[2] The grimoires associated with Egyptian and Babylonian times were relevant to 'scientific study' such as alchemy, while grimoires popular during the late medieval period and the 18th century, were written with more of a focus on magical beliefs and practices and other folk traditions.[3]. During this period, magicians(a term which can be traced from the Greek magos and Old Persian magŭs who were high priests or “learned men")[4] were frequently prosecuted by the Christian church, so their journals were kept hidden to prevent them from being burned.[5] Such books contain astrological correspondences, lists of angels and demons, directions on casting charms and spells, on mixing medicines, summoning unearthly entities, and making talismans. "Magical" books in almost any context, especially books of magical spells, are also called grimoires.

Contents

Origin of the term

Medieval and Renaissance

18th to 19th century

20th century to present

Popular culture

References

External links

Origin of the term

The word ''grimoire'' is from the Old French ''grammaire'', and is from the Greek root "grammatikos", “relating to letters”, from which ''grammar'', a system for language, and ''glamour'', influential appeal, are derived. In the mid-late Middle Ages, Latin "grammars" (books on Latin syntax and diction) were foundational to school and university education, as controlled by the Church—while to the illiterate majority, non-ecclesiastical books were suspect as magic, or believed to be endowed with supernatural influence. But "grammar" also denoted, to literate and illiterate alike, a book of basic instruction. A grammar is a description of a set of symbols and how to combine them to create well-formed sentences. A grimoire is, appropriately enough, a description of a set of magical symbols and how to combine them properly.

Medieval and Renaissance

Main articles: Renaissance magic

The first grimoires appear in the High Middle Ages, growing out of earlier traditions, notably of medieval Jewish mysticism, which continued traditions dating back to Late Antiquity. Thus, the 13th century Sefer Raziel Ha-Malakh is significantly based on the Sefer Ha-Razim (ca. 4th or 5th century), which is in turn influenced by Hellenistic Greek magical papyri.
Notable 13th to 17th century grimoires include:

★ The Picatrix, or, ''Ghâyat al-Hakîm fi'l-sihr''; also known as ''The Aim of the Sage'' (13th century)

★ ''Liber Iuratus'', or, the ''Sworn Book of Honorius'' (13th century)

★ Sefer Raziel Ha-Malakh ''Liber Razielis Archangeli'' (13th century)

★ The ''Book of the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the Mage'' (1450s)

★ The so-called Munich Handbook (15th century)

★ ''Libri tres de occulta philosophia'' by Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa (1531)

★ The ''Greater Key of Solomon'' (16th century)

★ Pseudomonarchia Daemonum (16th century)

★ The ''Lemegeton'', or, the ''Lesser Key of Solomon'' (17th century)
The Voynich manuscript has never been deciphered, and is difficult to date, but may also qualify as a 15th century grimoire.

18th to 19th century

★ The ''Black Pullet'' (18th century)

★ ''Le Grand Grimoire'', ''The Grand Grimoire'' (19th century, allegedly 1522)
In the late 19th century, several of these texts (including the Abra-Melin text and the Keys of Solomon) were reclaimed by para-Masonic magical organizations such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and the Ordo Templi Orientis.
A cottage industry has existed since the 19th century in selling false or carelessly-translated grimoires (many original texts are in French or Latin, and are quite rare), although faithful editions are available for most of the above titles.

20th century to present

Aleister Crowley, involved with both the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and the Ordo Templi Orientis, served as a vector for a number of modern movements, including Wicca, Satanism, and chaos magic.
A modern grimoire is the Simon Necronomicon, named after a fictional book of magic in the stories of author H.P. Lovecraft, and inspired by Sumerian mythology and the ''Ars Goetia'', a section in the ''Lesser Key of Solomon'' which concerns the summoning of demons.

Popular culture

The term "grimoire" commonly serves as an alternative name for a spell-book or tome of magical knowledge in such genres as fantasy fiction. The most famous fictional grimoire is the ''Necronomicon,'' a creation of the author H.P. Lovecraft. It was first referenced in his story "The Hound", and subsequently made appearances in many of his stories. Other authors such as August Derleth and Clark Ashton Smith have also cited it in their works with Lovecraft's approval. Lovecraft believed such common allusions built up "a background of evil verisimilitude". Many readers and others have believed it to be a real work, with booksellers and librarians receiving many requests for the fictional tome. Pranksters have even listed it in rare book catalogues, including one who surreptitiously slipped an entry into the Yale University Library card catalog.^[1]
In Gregory Maguire's novel, ''Wicked'', Elphaba and the Wizard vie for possession of the Grimmerie, a book of spells whose name is derived from grimoire.
It was also in the television series ''Charmed''. It was the evil version of the ''Book of Shadows''. In order to become the Source of All Evil, one must be coronated in a dark ceremony using a spell in the Grimoire.
In ''World of Warcraft'', Grimoires are items that teach new spells to Warlock's pets.
In ''Chuck Palahniuk's '' best-selling novel ''Lullaby'' a grimoire is a constantly talked about and sought after motif.
In ''Army Of Darkness'' a film, "Ash", (''Bruce Campbell'') must locate the ''Necronomicon'' and utter a magic phrase he fails to remember.

References

1. L. Sprague de Camp, ''Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers'', pp. 100–1. ISBN 0-87054-076-9.

External links

★ Internet Sacred Text Archives: Grimoires

★ Hermetics Library of Magical & Mystical E-Books

★ Magickal Athenaeum - a collection of magical PDF files

★ Timeline of esoterica